Plans to convert a listed building in a residential area of Perth into a pool hall have split the local community.
Fears over noise and anti-social behaviour if the project in Glover Street went ahead prompted 55 people to register objections with the council, but more than 300 letters of support have also been received.
On Wednesday the council’s development management committee will be asked to weigh up the pros and cons of the change of use application for the ground floor at Ainslie’s Antiques, 113 to 119 Glover Street, from storage to mixed uses including retail, pool hall, crèche and tearoom.
“The Glover Street area and the surrounding streets are largely residential in character, although there are some other non-residential uses present within the area,” notes Nick Brian, development control manager in a report to the committee.
“The existing building is category B listed, and retains a number of its historic features including very attractive windows and cast iron pillars within the internal space.
“The building was last used as a store associated with a local antiques business, however this business no longer uses the ground floor part of the building for its business interests and the ground floor is currently vacant pending the outcome of this planning application.
“Whilst the site is located within walking distance from the town centre, the site is not within the town centre as defined within the local development plan so therefore the acceptability of the pool hall element would be largely dependent on whether or not noise and disturbance can be suitably controlled so that (existing) residential amenity is not adversely affected.
“The vast majority of the objections highlight residential amenity issues as a significant area of concern for them, and question whether the proposed uses (in particular the proposed pool hall) are compatible with the surrounding residential uses.
“There are a number of residential properties in the area, and some which are within 10 metres of the site, which means that there is a clear potential for noise to become an issue if the development is not properly managed.”
The report states that Environmental Health have considered the proposal and are unconcerned regarding potential noise nuisance arising from the proposed crèche or tearoom.
However they did raise concerns over the pool hall.
Mr Brian said: “It is the case that the game of pool (or snooker) is in itself not a particularly noisy sport, however if large number of people congregate either externally or internally there is the potential that neighbours could be disturbed by anti-social behaviour and their residential amenity affected.
“The applicant has indicated within this submission that it is not his intention to licence the premises for the sale of alcohol.
“Alcohol consumption may not be the only contributor to noise nuisance but it is a significant contributor in most cases and in this case the fact that the premises will not be licenced is a significant material consideration. “
He felt that if conditions were applied and the hours of operation of all uses was limited to Monday to Sunday 7am to 11pm, the plan was acceptable and the recommendation to councillors is to approve.
